


The Last Rider

by ImpossibleClair



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Dragons, F/F, Goodbyes, I just needed astrid and heather being soft, Multi, POST-HTTYD3, and hiccup was there, angsty fluff, astrid and heather are totally a thing, do not copy to another site, hiccup and astrid are a thing?, i cried while writing this i'm soft okay, i guess?, read it however you like, the last dragon rider returns to berk to bid her final goodbyes, there might be a poly relationship there idk i was winging it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-19
Updated: 2020-01-19
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:15:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22316191
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ImpossibleClair/pseuds/ImpossibleClair
Summary: The dragons have all gone. They've been gone for a while, but one last dragon rider still roams the archipelago.And it's time for her to say goodbye.
Relationships: Heather/Astrid Hofferson, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III/Astrid Hofferson, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III/Heather/Astrid Hofferson
Comments: 3
Kudos: 24





	The Last Rider

It had been twelve moons since any Berkian had seen a dragon. They still looked up at the sound of wings when great flocks of birds flew overhead, or bats flitted through the night. The grumbles and groans of oxen had come to sound nostalgically reptilian to them. Sometimes, when sheep were herded across the village, they still wore their scaly coats, and children and adults alike would double-take when they saw them. 

  
They had grown used to the knowledge that these fleeting signs of their old lives were nothing more than shadows, reflections of an era ended. In their minds, they chided themselves – not a dragon, just a regular slice of Viking life. And they would go about their day a little sadder than they were before. 

  
None could believe their eyes when a dragon landed in the village centre. The heartbeat of the entire village skipped, stumbling for a moment as it beheld the shining creature swoop low over the shingled rooftops and land gracefully. There was a sound of singing metal as its wings folded. The figure sitting astride it lowered their hood.  
Stillness settled over the villagers. It had been so long, so very long since they’d been so close to a dragon, that the sight of the sharp, metallic creature sent something akin to a thrill of fear through them all. That is, all but one. 

  
Astrid dumped the furs she carried into the arms of the nearest person, and raced across the grass. As Heather dismounted, Astrid threw her arms around her. In the desperate ferocity of the return embrace, Astrid knew why her friend had finally returned. She stood back, giving Heather a chance to breathe. 

  
“Been a long time,” she said. 

  
Heather laughed.

  
“Too long, I know.” She hesitated. “I… I’m so sorry. About the dragons.”

  
After a year, Astrid was practiced at holding back her tears.

  
“It’s the way it had to be,” she replied. She nodded to Windshear. “Can I…?”

  
Heather gestured her invitation, and Astrid walked forward to touch the Razorwhip’s scales. They were warm and smooth; she could feel them shift as the dragon breathed. She walked slowly along, her hand gliding over the scales, the wings, not shying away from the sharp edges and spikes. When she rounded at last to the dragon’s head, she took it in her hands and pressed her forehead to the snout. Windshear rumbled softly, and Astrid felt her heart cry out for that part of itself which it had lost forever. 

  
She reluctantly stepped away, into Heather’s waiting arms. 

  
“Thank you,” she whispered. 

  
“For what?”

  
“For coming home.”

  
*

  
Hiccup, Astrid and Heather stood on the clifftop. Further down the grassy slope at their backs, the people of New Berk gathered in silent ranks to watch the final farewell. They stayed well back; this was not their goodbye to say. Nevertheless, their hands had reached out to touch the Razorwhip as she had walked past with her rider, everybody wanting one last confirmation that the dragons still lived and breathed. And like the dragons they had come to love, Windshear slipped from their fingers.

  
Hiccup and Astrid gave the dragon and rider space to say their farewells. They watched as Heather did as Astrid had done, circling her beloved dragon, touching every scale and tracing the wing membranes, studying every detail. Her face was locked in a frown as she concentrated, committing to memory each sweeping curve and jagged edge. When at last she looked Windshear in the eyes, her constitution failed. Tears welled in her eyes as she embraced the dragon, her saviour and companion of the past ten years. Windshear tucked her head over Heather’s shoulder and crooned.

  
It was a long minute before Heather could gather the strength to let go. She fumbled with the saddle, releasing it and dragging it to the ground. 

  
“Go,” she choked out. She wanted to add ‘I love you,’ but her throat closed before she could form the words. 

  
With a final glance over her shoulder, Windshear raised her wings and sliced her way into the sky. 

  
It was a cold, overcast day, and it took only seconds for the silvery dragon to vanish among the clouds. Even as Heather furiously wiped her eyes to clear her vision, the last trace of a wing was disappearing. A blink, and it was gone. 

  
She felt hands on her shoulders and her waist. They didn’t ask her to move. They simply lent a weight and a comfort, a reassurance that in this sorrow, she was not alone. 

  
*

  
They sat in Hiccup’s house, much later, without the crowds watching on. The fire was high and warm, the house dim and homely. 

  
Heather had cried herself out, and found herself leaning against Astrid as they shared their tales. Victories and defeats, discoveries and losses alongside their dragons were recalled with bittersweet smiles. 

  
“I knew something had happened,” Heather said as she reached the end of her stories. “Windshear flew for two days and two nights across the sea. She wouldn’t listen to a word I said. And then we found it.”

  
“The Hidden World?”

  
Despite their redness, Heather’s eyes shone with the memory of the wonderful place.

  
“She took me down the waterfalls and the caverns beneath were just…” She shook her head, speechless. “And then we left. We flew home. About a month later she flew back, and after that she just kept returning.”

  
She sighed. Astrid started to undo her braid, combing out the lengths of dark hair.

  
“I used to wait for her. She left me on the rocks at the top of the waterfalls and I waited, sometimes for days. She always looked so happy when she came back. I knew after a while that I couldn’t keep taking her away from it.”

  
“It’s where she belongs,” Astrid agreed, stroking her fingers through Heather’s hair. 

  
“Why did you bring her here first?” Hiccup sat forward on his cushion. “If you don’t mind me asking.”

  
Heather shook her head. 

  
“I think it was more for myself. I wanted to be sure that… that there was no other way.”

  
More tears threatened then, and she lent gratefully into the kiss Astrid placed on her head. 

  
“I’m sorry, Heather,” Hiccup said, reaching out to touch her hand. He wasn’t as close with her as Astrid was, but he offered what comfort he could.

  
“Will you stick around for the wedding?” Astrid asked, changing the subject. 

  
“I was hoping to stay a bit longer than that, actually.” Heather looked between them, as if for permission. “If I may?”

  
Hiccup smirked and mocked an air of strictness. 

  
“Oh, I don’t know, might be complicated. What do you think, Astrid?”

  
“Hmm, I think it’s a risk. But then again…”

  
Astrid grinned and grabbed Heather in a hug, startling a laugh out of her as she was dragged into the embrace. She couldn’t help but laugh more as Astrid began to tickle her, stymying her attempts to escape until she was wheezing for breath and her face hurt from smiling.

  
Hiccup eventually came to her rescue, surprising Astrid with a jab to the ribs and wrangling her into a wrestling match which lasted all of ten seconds before she bested him.   
They all fell back against the rugs, breathless and smiling, feeling the peace that comes with knowing you are where you’re meant to be. 

**Author's Note:**

> I've sat on this since the third movie came out. I guess I felt if I posted it, I'd be saying goodbye to the franchise for real. But the time has come, and I want to share this.  
> It's far from my finest work, but I'm quite proud of it, and I hope you all enjoyed it.


End file.
